Just Jane Taking Off!

On March 1, 2010, Just Jane Boutique opened their doors and began offering handbags and fashion accessories to fashion lovers in the Phoenix area. The business continues to grow out of a partnership between Jane McCann and Mayva Kern. McCann, a veteran of the fashion industry for 20 years in London, eventually came to Arizona to raise her kids. Kern, originally from New York, worked as founder and CEO of her own handbag and accessory company. The two met in March 2009, and from there, a company was born.

Just Jane Boutique’s Jane and Mayva have been wonderful supporters of Phoenix Fashion Week and we wanted to know a little more about these great women, and knew you would too, so we asked Jane McCann a few questions.

Q. You’ve just opened your beautiful new showroom in Cave Creek. Prior to the opening how were you reaching your target market?A. Through meet-up groups such as Fashion Arizona and our online store. Always carrying merchandise in the back of the car helps, too.

Q. What lines are you featuring right now?A. At the moment we are carrying the Big Buddha line which has been enormously successful. We’re one of their biggest customers and they have recognized us by featuring us in magazines such as Oprah (December 2010) and More Magazine. (Spring, 2010). We also carry Via Nova, Meli Bianco, Imoshion and many more.

Q. How do you decide what lines to offer?A: Mayva and I have 40 years of fashion experience between them, so inspiration is something that comes easily. “It is a passion for both of us; can’t switch it on, can’t switch it off. Having said that, we also surround ourselves with smart people who also have a lot of experience and knowledge about fashion. We are always thinking ahead and constantly developing new ideas.”

Q. You have a private label product line called Mayva-Jane in development. When will you be launching it? Is it all handbags? Do you plan to add categories to it?A. We’ve already showcased our very first Mayva Jane handbag and been thrilled with the number of pre-orders we’ve received. It doesn’t officially go on sale until Valentine’s Day. We’re already working hard on the next handbag and plan to have a full collection by the end of 2011. At this time, Mayva Jane is going to be just handbags, but when you’re the creator, there are no limits.

Q. You do a lot of special events. Do you enjoy doing them? What’s the best part?A. The events are a lot of work and you have to enjoy doing them. This line of work isn’t for everyone. It’s basically a sales job with targets and rewards. That means no sales, no rewards. It’s hard to say what bit I like best, when it’s going well, I love all of it, when it’s going slow, it basically sucks.

Q. Just Jane Boutique also offers women interested in sales the opportunity to become consultants and do house parties and events, too. What’s the strategy behind this decision?A. Just Jane has recently hired an Operations Manager, Jillian Ashley, who will be stationed in our showroom five days a week. This is a result of the way the business is growing. We have had a lot of advice. Some of it was actually good, and some of it wasn’t. For example, people have told me to pay myself first. I have since found out that having your own business means that you’re lucky if you get paid at all, let alone first.

Q: Where would you like to see Just Jane Boutique in 5 years? Are you planning to expand your product offering?A: There are many avenues we can take to improve and grow Just Jane through the Mayva-Jane line. I would like to see our bags sold in boutiques worldwide.

Q: What would you like people to know about your company?A: It is very important that people know and understand that we only buy and sell top brand names. The quality of our products has been the absolute key to the success of our company.

To find out more information about Just Jane Boutique, or to become a consultant, go online at www.justjaneboutique.com; contact them: Jane McCann at 480-277-4539 or Mayva Kern at 480-861-4520. Visit the show room at 20830 North 25th Place Suite, Phoenix.

Just Jane Boutique is also offering a discount to Phoenix Fashion Week Readers and supporters. Save 15% on purchases by going to the Just Jane Boutique Website, http://www.justjaneboutique.com, and entering the PHXFW code.